Boy Allowed To Run For Homecoming “QUEEN” After High School Initially Denies Request

7:24 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016 | Filed in: Nation

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — An Orange County, Florida, high school student said he wants to be homecoming queen, but school administrators initially wouldn’t allow it because of his gender.

That changed when WFTV’s Mike Manzoni began asking questions about the policy.

The school is now reversing its decision, saying the policy will allow Anthony Martinez to run for homecoming queen and the principal who told the boy he couldn’t run never consulted with the district’s central office.

Martinez said he became emotional when he was told he couldn’t run for homecoming queen. His boyfriend, Joncarlo Medina, wants to run for homecoming king.  (Oh no… a gay guy becomes Heaven Help Us.. emotional).

?Martinez was first told by Cypress Creek High School Principal John McHale he couldn’t run for queen because he’s a boy.

“I started crying. Like, it made me really emotional considering how hard I was trying to be queen,” Martinez said.   Queer boy crying because he wasn’t allowed to participate?  Oh,, get off it.”

Then Manzoni contacted the school district for answers, a spokesperson said Martinez is eligible to run for the king or queen position.

The spokesperson said McHale, “Did not consult with the central office, but made what he thought was an appropriate decision at the time.”  “Bad decision by McHale, girls will be girls, and boys will be boys”

Orange County Public Schools’ anti-discrimination policy says the district cannot discriminate against students on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.  “Orange County needs to rethink this position.”

Martinez said he’s glad to know he can now run for the position.

“I just feel it’s phenomenal,” said Martinez. “I feel like you guys convinced them”

The principal sent Manzoni an email Tuesday night saying that after further research, he realized any student may run for either homecoming king or queen.

Comments by Steve Smith

I’m not a ‘queer’ hater, the actions of two (or more) people behind closed doors are none of my business.  But to desire a ‘queen’ who is male at an high school gala is going too far.  Whatever happened to just a boy and a girl?  Get the biological data on each, send it to committee, and let the powers that be make a decision, based on Male and Female.

No policy should allow a male and male, or a female and female, to participate.  Our history allows much, but not this.

I say keep the Homecoming King and Queen simply a male and female issue.  The movie Grease comes to mind.  Whether you’re male and ‘queer’, or a female who is a lesbian, I say keep it out of our schools.

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